Speed Read: A retro-fabulous Yamaha WR155 scrambler and more

This week’s selection of custom bikes is all about the finishes. We have a Yamaha WR155 scrambler with a classic ‘speed block’ livery, a Honda CRF450 with art by a four-year-old, and a Hero Honda Hunk café racer with a livery inspired by single malt whiskey. Pier City Cycles brings it home, delivering a BMW R nineT with a paint job you could drown in.

Yamaha WR155 by Katros Garage With the enduring popularity of scramblers and trackers, it’s a wonder we haven’t seen more manufacturers building modern classics based on dirt bikes from their pasts. That may have been on the minds of the crew at Katros Garage when they created this stunning custom Yamaha WR155 scrambler.

The little Yamaha is an Indonesian favorite, but Katros was keen to get away from the modern, angular, plastic bodywork, in favor of something a little more classy.

Built for a customer who works for the lubricant company Ipone, the bike was inspired by the original Fantic Caballero 125 and the Yamaha XT500 Dakar bikes. It was made to be ridden too, with the customer requesting a scrambler that can commute and play with equal enthusiasm.

The WR155’s tubular steel frame has been draped in custom bodywork, all made in-house at Katros Garage. The classic-style tank, radiator covers, and side panels suit the bike perfectly, as do the custom seat and new fenders.

Amazingly, the frame has not been altered in any way. We don’t think the customer would ever want to go back to the stock bodywork, but it’s nice for them to have the option. All the lights are new, with LEDs brightly lighting the way.

The bike wears dual-purpose tires, wrapped around new rims that allow for chunkier rubber and suit the tracker style. The rear suspension and linkage were upgraded to suit the customer, and the handlebars were repositioned for improved ergonomics and control.

The wonderful blue paint—augmented with classic Yamaha ‘speed blocks’ and Ipone graphics—is the cherry on the top. Finally, a GP7 Seca exhaust system ensures that the beautiful tracker turns heads wherever it goes.

Katros Garage is proud as punch of this build, and so they should be. [Katros Garage]

Honda CRF450 by Giorgio De Angelis While nothing is better than hitting the road and eating up miles and scenery, it’s hard to be away from your family for extended periods. So when Giorgio De Angelis signed up for La Ruta del Nabab 2024, he thought he’d take a little bit of home with him on the journey.

La Ruta del Nabab is a nine-day, 930-plus-mile tour of the Moroccan desert—so a more off-road-oriented bike is an appropriate choice for traversing endless dunes. Giorgio chose his 2018 Honda CRF450RX, but since the rally (and its riders) has a classic style, he needed to make some choice visual and performance modifications.

As a tribute to his family at home, the CRF wears a vibrant hand-painted livery. This is courtesy of Giorgio’s four-year-old daughter, who added her art directly onto the fresh white plastics. The fenders are vintage steel items, and the headlight is from a Honda XR500. A gold headlight guard protects it from errant rocks.

Vintage enduro-style bars were installed, with gold-painted hand guards to match the headlight and front fender mount. Extended distances between fuel stops are common in the desert, so Giorgio fitted a 12-liter [3.2-gallon] Acerbis fuel tank and a new leather-covered saddle.

Xtrig Rocs valves were installed in the factory suspension to keep things plush, with Rebel tires and mousse tubes from Technomousse Italia letting Giorgio run low tire pressures through the sand. A GPR Italia racing exhaust gives the bike its bark, contrasting nicely against the playful livery.

Giorgio departs Rome for La Ruta del Nabab in May, and we wish him all the best on his one-of-a-kind rally machine. Not only will he make the desert more colorful, but he’s also making this week’s Speed Read a bit more animated. [Giorgio De Angelis Instagram | Images by Giovanni De Angelis]

Hero Honda Hunk by Time Cycles Based in the rural outskirts of Mhow in Madhya Pradesh, India, Time Cycles is run by husband and wife duo Shashank and Evangeline. With a garage and café under one roof, the couple combines their love of motorcycling with food.

This skinny café racer was built for Joy Isyas, a professional footballer, who wanted a stylish bike for navigating India’s bustling streets. A tired, but reliable, Hero Honda Hunk was chosen for its lightness and ergonomics. A product of the era when Hero and Honda were in cahoots, the Hunk is a simple commuter that uses the same 149.2 cc single-cylinder mill as the Honda Unicorn.

It’s rather generic-looking in stock guise, but Time Cycles has seen to that. Most of the factory bodywork was quickly discarded, and the stance was tweaked by lowering the front of the bike by 60 mm and raising the rear by 25 mm. Joy’s requests included athletic and lightweight bodywork, minimal switchgear, and a purposeful cockpit.

All of the bodywork was custom-made by Time Cycles’ fabricator friend, Anis. Using a donor fuel tank and polystyrene blocks, Shashank mocked up a seat for Anis to produce in metal. Anis then blended the tank and seat, forming a monocoque construction.

The seat was trimmed in brown leather and features a cork detail to hide a mounting screw that keeps the bodywork in place. The crew also welded a rear loop onto the subframe, to act as a grab handle when moving the bike around. A round LED light sits out back.

The engine was also rebuilt and cleaned up, and the bike was rewired. The custom, free-flowing exhaust and K&N air filter work well with a tuned carburetor. An interesting detail is the old-school glass fuel filter, which must look pretty cool with fluid flowing through it.

A single speedometer is nestled between the front forks, which wear new clip-on handlebars wrapped in Trip Machine leather grips. The footpegs are from a Royal Enfield Thunderbird, and the rear brake and shift levers are both custom.

While enjoying a single malt whiskey one night with some friends, Shashank had an epiphany. The bike, which was taking some time to complete, was slowly coming together—just like a good whiskey. The seat has been etched with ‘Single Malt’ lettering, and the delicious metallic bronze pinstripe and detailing are reminiscent of the expensive drop. [Time Cycles Instagram | Images by Nirmesh Singh Chauhan]

BMW R nineT by Pier City Cycles Based on the south coast of England, the boys at Pier City Cycles specialize in BMW R nineT customs. Rory and Stu have been tinkering with the platform for years, and stock some of the coolest parts that R nineT owners can find. Building on these years of experience, the made-to-order Midnight Series is Pier City’s expression of the ultimate R NineT.

PCC has upgraded almost every area of the R nineT. Their own front fender is fitted to the blacked-out front end, with a PCC headlight cowl wrapped around a KOSO LED headlight further up. Rizoma handlebars wear a KOSO digital speedo and Motogadget mirrors.

The engine has been upgraded with a PCC air box removal kit, DNA filters, and a PCC air intake scoop. For the exhaust, owners can choose between a low box-style exhaust from G&G, or Unit Garage headers with a more traditional Akrapovič muffler (as pictured here). The cylinder head covers have been refinished, and the bike comes with an RS2E electronics package, complete with a quick-shifter.

The bespoke seat is trimmed in black leather here but is also available with Alcantara details. A PCC three-in-one taillight is fitted, together with Gilles Tooling rear sets and a Wilbers rear shock. The tail is kept tidy with a swingarm-mounted numberplate bracket.

No custom bike is complete without a stunning paint job, and the Midnight Series is no exception. PCC has teamed up with Valkyrie Paintworks, offering the R nineT in any color you like, with a special ‘Midnight’ finish.

If you’ve got a third-generation R nineT and want it imbued with extra style, Pier City Custom has you covered for the tidy sum of £12,599.16 [about $15,876]. They can source a suitable donor for you too, bringing the price to £25,199.16 [about $31,753.46]. [Pier City Cycles]

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Wicked Cool: K-Speed’s custom Triumph Scrambler 400 X and Speed 400

Thailand’s K-Speed is a house of many talents. But there’s one particular trick that they excel at, and that’s turning small-capacity motorcycles into custom machines with big attitudes. So we’re not the least bit surprised to see them apply their signature style to the freshly minted Triumph Scrambler 400 X and Speed 400.

Created in collaboration with the massive Indian marque Bajaj, Triumph’s new 398 cc singles exist to offer potential customers a lower point of entry into the brand. They’ve been well received so far, with particular praise for their looks and finishes. If we’re being honest, they’re the type of bikes that don’t particularly need customization—but that’s never stopped K-Speed’s enigmatic founder, Eak.

Eak was approached by Triumph Thailand, who wanted a custom Triumph Scrambler 400 X to show off at the upcoming Bangkok International Motor Show. They specifically requested that the scrambler be customized in K-Speed’s typical style; music to Eak’s ears.

Again, there’s a lot to love about the Triumph 400 platform—so there’s a lot that Eak chose not to mess with. The Scrambler 400 X retains its fuel tank (a dead ringer for the tanks on Triumph’s bigger bikes), plus its suspension, ByBre brakes, and handsome 19F/17R alloy wheels. Motoz Tractionator Adventure tires add some sass to the pint-sized Triumph.

The first major change is the Scrambler 400 X’s tail section. K-Speed removed all the stock bits, before cutting and looping the bike’s subframe. A custom saddle sits up top, upholstered in a stylish quilted pattern with K-Speed’s ‘Diablo’ (their in-house parts line) branding.

It’s a pretty neat arrangement. The seat stops just short of the subframe loop, which in turn is arched to flow onto the custom-made rear fender. To keep the fender as bare as possible, K-Speed mounted one of their taillights under the seat.

Further forward, a custom strap runs over the top of the fuel tank, while new risers grip the bars. K-Speed also installed new grips, bar-end mirrors, and a handlebar brace, all from their own catalog. The ignition barrel still sits front and center, but the speedo’s been moved to the left of the bike, mounted on a custom bracket.

K-Speed designed and manufactured an ABS plastic front fender with a bracket to mount it high, then trimmed the OEM fender mounts, repurposing them as fork protectors. A smaller-than-stock LED headlight sits above the fender, mounted in a handmade cage. Discreetly mounted LED turn signals sit fore and aft.

K-Speed treated the Triumph Scrambler 400 X to a brooding dark grey livery, going as far as to repaint the original side covers too. A bunch of the bike’s hard parts were redone in black, and the forks were stripped and coated in a dark titanium color.

Fishing touches include ribbed engine covers, made from a heat-resistant resin, and a new blacked-out exhaust.

Not content to build just one Triumph 400, Eak decided to apply the same design to the Triumph Speed 400, with a few well-judged changes. K-Speed’s primary business is parts, so the project also offered the workshop the opportunity to prototype new bolt-on accessories—and building two bikes gave them a way to showcase the versatility of those accessories.

K-Speed’s Triumph Speed 400 boasts the same parts list as the Scrambler 400 X, but it uses a bigger headlight and a cage-less headlight bracket. Chunky Motoz Tractionator Desert H/T tires wrap around the bike’s 17” wheels, while a low-slung exhaust keeps things compact.

A gloss black paint job sets it apart too, with brown upholstery on the seat. (Keen eyes will also notice that the Speed 400’s seat extends all the way to the back of the subframe).

As intended, the project yielded not only two sharp-looking custom motorcycles but a smorgasbord of bolt-on Triumph 400 parts too—most of which are already available from K-Speed’s online store. So if you’ve got your heart set on a Scrambler 400 X or Speed 400, they’ve got you covered.

K-Speed website | Instagram

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First Look: The LiveWire S2 Mulholland electric cruiser

Even though it was born from the world’s most prolific cruiser company, the all-electric LiveWire brand’s catalog has been curiously devoid of any cruisers… until now. Get a load of the new $15,999 LiveWire S2 Mulholland. LiveWire calls it an electric performance cruiser—which is fine, provided you’re happy to play fast and loose with the term ‘cruiser.’

Available immediately in North America, the LiveWire S2 Mulholland is the second electric motorcycle to use LiveWire’s S2 platform. It follows the S2 Del Mar, but trades the Del Mar’s street tracker style for a laid-back, cruiser-inspired layout.

To get that right, LiveWire raised the front end with longer forks, reduced the rear shock’s travel, and swapped out the Del Mar’s 19F/19R wheels for a 19F/17R combo. The Mulholland still wears alloy wheels with Brembo brakes, but trades its Showa suspension for Hitachi parts, offering full adjustability and 5.3 inches [135 mm] of travel up front, and preload and rebound adjustability with 2.9 [74 mm] inches of travel out back.

It comes specced with Dunlop Sportmax Roadsmart IV tires, with a claimed lean angle of 55° and 50° on the left and right respectively. The seat dips to an accommodating height of 30.25 inches [768 mm], and the bars have been raised to create a knuckles-in-the-breeze riding position.

The muscular 6” bar risers and low-rise handlebars look great, as do the bar-end mirrors and the clever positioning of the Mulholland’s round TFT dash. Combined with the tall forks and tucked headlight (which looks to be borrowed from the flagship LiveWire One), the entire front end is a clear nod to club-style performance cruisers.

The rear fender is equally easy on the eye, but it’s in the middle of the bike where the design falls flat. According to LiveWire, they have “reimagined the profile and silhouette of the motorcycle—traditionally informed by the gas tank.” So, with no need for a fuel tank, the bike simply features a neatly dressed hump up top that serves to hide a handful of components, and to connect the seat and battery casing to the bike’s steering neck, visually.

That small area is a great piece of design on its own, but its diminutive size leaves the seat to fill the rest of the real estate on top of the Mulholland. The result is a saddle that attempts to mesh the look of a supermoto with the look of a cruiser—but ends up looking janky instead. (TL;DR: The Mulholland has a lot of nice details, but they don’t mesh.)

Add to that the Mulholland’s relatively short wheelbase (57.8 inches; longer than the Del Mar but significantly shorter than a Harley-Davidson Evo Sporty), and the bike doesn’t quite nail the concept of a cruiser. Plus it looks notably cramped—particularly if you add the optional pillion accommodations and take a passenger along.

The passenger kit includes a rear seat, backrest, and passenger footpegs. Other aftermarket add-ons include different windscreens, soft and hard luggage, luggage racks, and a handful of dress-up parts.

The LiveWire S2 Mulholland is also the brand’s first motorcycle to use sustainable materials in its construction. And while dyed-in-the-wool bikers are likely to write that off as a marketing spiel designed to reach a younger and more enlightened audience, it’ll certainly pique the interest of eco-conscious riders who see electrification as a means to sustainability.

The Mulholland’s fenders are made from a hemp bio-composite material, while the radiator shrouds and wiring caddies are made from Hylon—a recycled material that’s made using discarded ocean fishing nets. The seat cover uses a petroleum-free and recyclable silicon, eschewing the typical leather or vinyl options.

Taking the concept one step further, the Mulholland’s ‘Lunar White’ color option uses no paint, showing off the hemp-based material instead. (You can get it in a painted ‘Liquid Black’ finish too.)

Performance-wise, the 432-pound LiveWire S2 Mulholland trades a smidgen of the Del Mar’s zest for a smidgen of extra range. Its motor kicks out the same 84 horsepower and 194 fl-lb of torque, but it lists a zero to sixty time of 3.3 seconds and a maximum range of 121 miles (the Del Mar’s numbers are three seconds and 113 miles, respectively).

121 miles is listed as the Mulholland’s city range; LiveWire lists a range of 73 miles of highway riding, or 91 miles of combined riding. Those numbers will vary according to how you ride in the real world, and which of the LiveWire’s myriad riding modes you use. (There’s a full suite of electronic rider aids, including ABS, traction control, and rear wheel anti-slip control.

The 10.5 kWh battery pack can charge from 20 to 80 percent in 5.9 hours and from zero to 100 percent in 9.1 hours on a Level 1 charger. Plug it into a Level 2 charger, and you’ll get it from 20 to 80 percent in 78 minutes and zero to 100 percent in two hours and 22 minutes.

If you’re based in the US or Canada, you can snag your own LiveWire S2 Mulholland right away. But if you’re in any other part of the world, you’ll have to wait until next year, which is when LiveWire says they will roll it out to other (undetermined) parts of the world.

The big question is whether there’s a market for an electric performance cruiser that doesn’t quite feel like a performance cruiser—especially when its stablemate (the Del Mar) looks heaps better and costs $500 less. As my friend Jensen Beeler is fond of saying, only time will tell.

Source: LiveWire

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Lightning Strike: A Buell XB12S street fighter from France

Buell’s tempestuous history is sprinkled with moments of sheer motorcycling brilliance. And the XB series of the early 2000s ranks high on the American motorcycle company’s list of greatest hits.

The Buell XB had tongues wagging for an array of reasons when it first hit the scene. Not only did the XB’s fuel-in-frame design go on to be a Buell hallmark, but the bike also used an oil-bearing swingarm, perimeter front disc brake, and compact underslung exhaust system. All this in an uncompromising streetfighter package powered by an H-D Sportster powerplant.

The 2008-model Buell XB12S Lightning even featured translucent bodywork, offering a peek at its special downdraught air intake through the faux tank cover. But that aesthetic was a little too early-2000s for the owner of this Buell XB12S—which is why he entrusted it to Steven Lucas for a makeover.

Based in the Quiberon peninsula in Western France, Steven works as a furniture maker, welder-for-hire, and custom motorcycle builder, all under the banner of Matao. His approach on this project was simple; keep all the details that make the Buell XB12S special, but tighten it up visually.

Steven started by denuding the Buell of all of its bodywork, save for its front fender and rear hugger. Next, he unbolted its blocky subframe, replacing it with a handmade tubular steel unit. A custom seat sits up top, built on a carbon fiber pan, and upholstered in luxurious Alcantara by La Sellerie Fleury.

An Öhlins shock sits below the seat, flanked by Motogadget LEDs that act as taillights and turn signals. The license plate has been relocated to behind the rear tire, mounted on a custom-made bracket that’s bolted to the swingarm.

The old tank cover’s been replaced by a handmade part, formed from fiberglass. What stands out, is how well the new parts pay homage to the original bike. The tank cover has the same sculpted vibe about it, the Buell’s forward-heavy design has been exaggerated, and the gap under the tank cover mimics the gap under the OEM seat.

It’s the same story up front, where a steel number board plays host to an ultra-bright Baja Designs LED. The light is mounted low, mimicking the placement of the stock bike’s twin headlights relative to its fly screen.

Further back, you’ll find a burly set of risers and handlebars from Rizoma. A tiny Motogadget speedo sits just below the bars, fitted in a housing that also holds the bike’s LED warning lights. The switches, bar-end turn signals, and mirrors are Motogadget parts too, the grips are from Renthal, and the controls are from Beringer.

A chunky pod filter lurks below the tank cover, visible via a cutout in the bodywork. The bike’s electronics and battery sit under there too, along with a Motogadget control unit.

It’s business as usual for the Buell XB’s fuel-filled frame, oil-filled swingarm, perimeter front brake, famous mismatched alloy wheels, and front forks (although those have been blacked out). Pirelli Diablo Supercorsa SC tires make the bike’s intentions clear; it’s a street fighter, through and through.

To make sure the Buell has the go to match its show, Steven yanked the engine out and sent it to Twin Motorcycles France for a rebuild. A full exhaust system from GPR in Italy takes care of the soundtrack.

L’Atelier de So handled the silver paint on the tank cover, while ABdeco tackled the black finishes on the hard parts. Nickel-plated fasteners add hints of contrast to the mostly-black mechanical bits.

These muted finishes only emphasize this Buell XB12S street fighter’s brutal vibe. Minimalist and unapologetic, it’s a cracking redesign of one of Buell’s best releases.

Matao | Facebook | Instagram | Images by Les Studios de Broceliande

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Revealed: The 2024 Husqvarna Svartpilen 801 breaks cover

Husqvarna teased us two weeks ago with a camouflaged prototype of the long-awaited Svartpilen 801. The production version of the Husqvarna Svartpilen 801 has just broken cover—and it’s pretty much the same bike, sans stickers. Surprised?

The 2024 Husqvarna Svartpilen 801 replaces the single-cylinder Svartpilen 701 as the big brother to the smaller 125 and 401 variants. No longer a thumper, it now boasts a 799 cc parallel-twin engine, good for 105 hp, with a respectable dry weight of 181 kilos [399 pounds]. The frame is a chromium-molybdenum affair that uses the engine as a stressed member.

Given Husqvarna’s practice of repurposing bikes from their parent company, KTM, we’re going to go out on a limb and say that the Svartpilen 801 uses the same platform as the KTM 790 Duke. Their engine specs read the same, their chassis look identical, and they share the same open lattice aluminum swingarm.

It’s disappointing that Husqvarna didn’t pick the brilliantly bonkers KTM 890 Duke R instead, but also understandable. The 790 platform demands less of a premium, and the type of rider that wants the KTM 890 Duke R’s outright performance is likely to buy a KTM 890 Duke R. Besides, the 790’s numbers are nothing to be scoffed at.

The engine’s 105 hp peak output hits at 9,250 rpm, with 87 Nm of torque at 8,000 rpm. Nikasil-coated cylinders and forged aluminum pistons do duty inside, with dual balancer shafts working to reduce vibrations. A slipper clutch and quick-shifter help riders blip through the six-speed transmission.

Braking is by way of Husqvarna-branded J.Juan parts; twin four-piston front calipers with 300 mm discs, and a single two-piston rear caliper with a 240 mm disc. Bosch ABS is standard, as is traction control; both are cornering-sensitive. Riders also get three selectable electronic rider modes, with a fourth mode, and a ‘Dynamic Pack’ that includes anti-wheelie control adjustment, cruise control, and more, available as optional extras.

The Svartpilen 801 also borrows its orange-hued cousin’s WP suspension components. WP APEX 43 mm upside-down open cartridge forks offer 140 mm of travel and are adjustable for compression and rebound. A rebound- and preload-adjustable WP APEX shock does duty out back, with 150 mm of rear wheel travel.

The Svartpilen 801’s alloy wheels resemble those on the outgoing Svartpilen 701, although the front wheel has gone down an inch in size, leaving the new Svartpilen with a matching set of 17s. (If you look really closely, the markings on the Pirelli MT60 RS front tire indicate that it’s an 18-inch item, but we’ve checked, and it’s a 17-inch hoop; weird.)

Visually, the Svartpilen 801 sticks to the same basic aesthetic as its predecessor, but with a few key deviations. The LED head- and taillight are straight out of the Svartpilen playbook, as are the sculpted panels that cover the 14-liter [3.7-gallon] fuel tank (although they’ve been redesigned somewhat). A cast aluminum tail section sits out back, doubling up as a subframe and hosting the bike’s airbox.

The jump from the 701 platform to the 801 platform is a big one, and some of our favorite details from the 701 have been lost in the process. The 801’s split seat design, although beautifully upholstered for a factory bike, doesn’t have the same slick flat track look that the 701’s did. We also miss the 701’s asymmetrical tail section with its right-side number board—another nod to flat track racing.

The 701’s number-plate-style headlight nacelle was a radical touch, but it’s now been ditched in favor of a simple fly screen, that just feels like a lazy way to hide the bike’s dashboard. That dash is now a whopping 5” TFT display, loaded with a full-color display and built-in connectivity features. The scrambler-style handlebars, switch blocks, and mirrors are all standard fare.

Husqvarna has a range of accessories on hand too, from Remus and Akrapovič silencers, to a pillion seat cover, bar-end mirrors, and more.

Overall, the Svartpilen’s 801 lacks the slick, cohesive vibe that the 701 had. While it’s certainly not outright ugly, it does miss the mark in some ways. Nitpicks aside, it’s hard not to be enticed by the idea of a bike that combines the bold, neo-retro aesthetic of Husqvarna’s street bikes with the muscle of KTM’s parallel twins.

Maybe it’ll grow on us, maybe it won’t. Either way, we sure are jonesing to take it for a spin.

Husqvarna | Images by Rudi Schedl

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